Surprise Amendment Could Change Jackson Contract Negotiations

A new bill could change the way union contracts are negotiated at Jackson.

Credit Salvatore Vuono / freedigitalphotos.net

TALLAHASSEE -- A high-profile healthcare bill moving through the Florida House could strip the Miami-Dade County Commission of its authority to make the final decision on labor union contracts at the county’s public hospital system.

The bill originally sought to create new rules for trauma centers, allow skilled nurses to practice independent of physicians, and pave the way for hospitals to use virtual healthcare services.

But last week, a lawmaker from Central Florida added language weakening the role of county commissions in overseeing public health trusts. There’s only one public health trust in Florida: the independent body that governs Jackson Health System.

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Jackson Health System wants to go after formerly uninsured individuals now receiving coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Because insured customers have increasingly been choosing hospitals with snazzier facilities, Jackson is asking Miami-Dade County voters to raise their own property taxes to cover a top-to-bottom remake of the hospital system.

If the referendum passes on Tuesday, JHS will issue bonds to raise $830 million for the renovations. The bond debt would add about $50 to the average county taxpayer's yearly tax bill.

The Miami Herald has been documenting life in South Florida through pictures for a long time now -- the paper's photo archives go back to well into the 1940s. The archives, which includes millions of photos, were just digitized last year. Now the paper is sharing those old photos with the public through a new website called Flashback Miami.

A state appeals court on Friday said the Florida Department of Health used an invalid rule to approve new trauma centers in Pasco, Manatee and Clay counties, handing a victory to nearby hospitals that have waged a long-running battle against the facilities.